JК
The Colorado Kid :: Кинг Стивен
Страница: 14 из 81”
“How many unknown things per story, dear?” Vince Teague asked. His voice was soft but his eyes were sharp.
She opened her mouth to sayAs many as six, anyway, thinking about the Church Picnic Poisoner, then closed it again. Six people had died that day on the shores of Tashmore Lake, but one whopper dose of poison had killed them all and she guessed that just one hand had administered it. She didn’t know how many Coast Lights there had been, but had no doubt that folks thought of it as a single phenomenon. So—
“One?” she said, feeling like a contestant in the Final Jeopardy round. “One unknown thing per story?”
Vince pointed his finger at her, smiling more widely than ever, and Stephanie relaxed. This wasn’t real school, and these two men wouldn’t like her any less if she flubbed an answer, but she had come to want to please them in a way she had only wanted to please the very best of her high school and college teachers. The ones who were fierce in their commitments.
“The other thing is that folks have to believe in their hearts that there’s amustabeen in there someplace, and they got a damn good idea what it is,” Dave said. “Here’s thePretty Lisa, washed up on the rocks just south of Dingle Nook on Smack Island in 1926—”
“’27,” Vince said.
“All right, ’27, smartybritches, and Teodore Riponeaux is still on board, but dead as a hake, and the other five are gone, and even though there’s no sign of blood or a struggle, folks saymustabeen pirates, so now there’s stories about how they had a treasure map and found buried gold and the folks that were guarding it took the swag off them and who knows whatall else.”
“Or they got fighting among themselves,” Vince said. “That’s always been aPretty Lisa favorite. The point is, there are stories some folks tell and other folks like to hear, but Hanratty was wise enough to know his editor wouldn’t fall for such reheated hash.”
“In another ten years, maybe,” Dave said.
“Because sooner or later, everything old is new again. You might not believe that, Steffi, but it’s actually true.”
“Ido believe it,” she said, and thought: Tea for the Tillerman, was that Al Stewart or Cat Stevens?
“Then there’s the Coast Lights,” Vince said, “and I can tell you exactly what’s always made that such a favorite.
“How many unknown things per story, dear?” Vince Teague asked. His voice was soft but his eyes were sharp.
She opened her mouth to sayAs many as six, anyway, thinking about the Church Picnic Poisoner, then closed it again. Six people had died that day on the shores of Tashmore Lake, but one whopper dose of poison had killed them all and she guessed that just one hand had administered it. She didn’t know how many Coast Lights there had been, but had no doubt that folks thought of it as a single phenomenon. So—
“One?” she said, feeling like a contestant in the Final Jeopardy round. “One unknown thing per story?”
Vince pointed his finger at her, smiling more widely than ever, and Stephanie relaxed. This wasn’t real school, and these two men wouldn’t like her any less if she flubbed an answer, but she had come to want to please them in a way she had only wanted to please the very best of her high school and college teachers. The ones who were fierce in their commitments.
“The other thing is that folks have to believe in their hearts that there’s amustabeen in there someplace, and they got a damn good idea what it is,” Dave said. “Here’s thePretty Lisa, washed up on the rocks just south of Dingle Nook on Smack Island in 1926—”
“’27,” Vince said.
“All right, ’27, smartybritches, and Teodore Riponeaux is still on board, but dead as a hake, and the other five are gone, and even though there’s no sign of blood or a struggle, folks saymustabeen pirates, so now there’s stories about how they had a treasure map and found buried gold and the folks that were guarding it took the swag off them and who knows whatall else.”
“Or they got fighting among themselves,” Vince said. “That’s always been aPretty Lisa favorite. The point is, there are stories some folks tell and other folks like to hear, but Hanratty was wise enough to know his editor wouldn’t fall for such reheated hash.”
“In another ten years, maybe,” Dave said.
“Because sooner or later, everything old is new again. You might not believe that, Steffi, but it’s actually true.”
“Ido believe it,” she said, and thought: Tea for the Tillerman, was that Al Stewart or Cat Stevens?
“Then there’s the Coast Lights,” Vince said, “and I can tell you exactly what’s always made that such a favorite.